Actinomycosis is a rare entity which presents some difficulties in establishing a correct preoperative diagnosis. Many actinomycotic pelvic infections in women are related to IUD use and the colonization rate appears to increase in accordance with the duration of IUD use. So, all women in IUD use are recommended to make cervicovaginal smear and pelvic infection associated with IUD use should be suspected to have actinomycoses. We report a case which presented painful mass on right upper and lower quadrant of abdomen of a 40-year-old women. We identified sulfur granules by histopathologic exam of surgically resected specimen. Eventually it proved to be pelvic and abdominal actinomycosis associated with the use of an intrauterine device. Because variable clinical pictures and infrequency of the disease make the diagnosis more difficult, increased alertness of clinicians and microbiologists to the presence of anaerobic organism as the cause of infection are needed to make an earlier and more correct diagnosis of actinomycoses and to further avoid any inappropriate treatment.
Abdomen ; Actinomycosis ; Adult ; Colon ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Intrauterine Devices ; Pelvic Infection ; Pelvis ; Sulfur

BACKGROUND: In a noisy hospital setting, it is not easy to induce hypnosis or sedation calmly. Although the noise stress has been neglected, it seems to disturb a patient's sleep or induction of sedation. Therefore, we tried to evaluate the effects of loud operating room (OR) background noise on bispectral index (BIS) during monitored anesthesia care (MAC) by using an audiometer and BIS monitor. METHODS: Thirty adult patients (ASA class I) were scheduled two times for nasal or dental procedures at an interval of two or three days. In a randomized, cross-over study design, we prospectively compared the BIS values according to the loudness of OR noise in two different depths of sedation during MAC. Propofol target controlled infusion (TCI) was started at a propofol target concentration (CT) 2.0 microgram/ml using a DiprifusorTM with flash mode until a BIS 80 and/or a modified Observer's Assessment of Alertness/Sedation (mOAAS) score of 4 (group 1), and BIS 75 and/or mOAAS score 3 (group 2) was obtained. We evaluated the effect site concentrations and the elapsed time and checked the BIS at 50, 80, 110, and 120 dB of sound pressure level (SPL) in both groups. RESULTS: The BIS at 80, 110 and 120 dB of SPL in group 1 was significantly increased compared to those at 50 dB (P < 0.05). Similarly, the BIS at 110 and 120 dB of SPL in group 1 was significantly increased compared to those at 80 dB (P < 0.05). The patients in their twenties were most susceptible to loud OR noise during sedation. CONCLUSIONS: The loud OR background noise might be possible to interfere with induction of sedation to a degree, which was more noticeable on light to moderate sedation than for deep sedation.
Adult ; Anesthesia* ; Conscious Sedation ; Cross-Over Studies ; Deep Sedation ; Humans ; Hypnosis ; Noise* ; Operating Rooms* ; Propofol ; Prospective Studies

OBJECTIVE: To compare the safety and efficacy of intravaginal misoprostol versus oral dinoprostone for labor induction at term. METHODS: One hundred of patients at term were randomized to receive either 50microgram of misoprostol vaginally every 4 hours or dinoprostone 0.5mg orally every 1 hour for the maximum of six doses. Intravenous infusion of oxytocin was administered under such circumferences as the patient did not go into active labor after maximum dose, SROM was developed without an adequate contraction pattern, or the patient had arrest of dilatation(no change in cervical dilatation for 2 hours). We compared the frequency of oxytocin augmentation, administration to delivery interval, vaginal delivery rate within 12 hours and 24 hours, intrapartum complications, induction failure, mode of delivery, neonatal outcomes, and maternal complications between two groups. RESULTS: The average interval from administration to delivery was shorter in the misoprostol group(739.4+/-372.4min vs 1087.7+/-765.1min, p<0.05), but the interval from administration to vaginal delivery of each group was similar(724.3+/-375.4min vs 800.3+/-697.0min). Regarding the frequency of vaginal delivery within 24 hours, however, misoprostol group was higher than dinoprostone group(88% vs 56%, p<0.001). And oxytocin augmentation of labor occurred less commonly in misoprostol group than in dinoprostone group(20% vs 76%, p<0.05). Any statistically significant difference in intrapartum complications, mode of delivery, and neonatal or maternal adverse outcome was not appeared between these two group. CONCLUSION: Vaginal misoprostol is as effective and safe as oral dinoprostone for cervical ripening and induction of labor at term. In addition, vaginal misoprostol contributes the curtailment of labor induction expenditure due to its moderate price; misoprostol costs 100 won per 50microgram.
Cervical Ripening ; Dinoprostone* ; Female ; Health Expenditures ; Humans ; Infusions, Intravenous ; Labor Stage, First ; Misoprostol* ; Oxytocin ; Pregnancy

PURPOSE: We wanted to investigate the effect of sublingual nitroglycerin (NTG) on improving the image quality and diagnostic accuracy of coronary computed tomographic angiography (CTA) for detecting atherosclerosis and significant stenosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively assessed the data of 81 patients who underwent coronary CTA. Forty three patients underwent coronary CTA without medication (the non-administrated group), while 38 patients were given 0.6 mg NTG sublingually before coronary CTA (the administrated group). Image quality was assessed using a five-point grading scale. We evaluated the diagnostic performance of coronary CTA for assessing atherosclerosis and significant stenosis (> or = 50%) in the 42 patients who underwent invasive coronary angiography. RESULTS: The mean image-quality grades were 4.09+/-0.72 and 4.50+/-0.60 in the non-administrated and administrated groups, respectively (p=0.008). On the per-artery analysis, the accuracy percentages for detecting coronary CTA were 65 and 88% for atherosclerosis and 82 and 80% for significant stenosis in the non-administrated and administrated groups, respectively. On the per-patient analysis, the positive predictive values for coronary CTA were 80% and 100% for atherosclerosis and 77% and 88% for significant stenosis in the non-administrated and administrated groups, respectively. CONCLUSION: Coronary CTA with NTG administration improved the image quality. The accuracy of coronary CTA for detecting atherosclerosis was higher in the administrated group than in the non-administrated group.
Administration, Sublingual* ; Angiography* ; Atherosclerosis ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Coronary Angiography ; Humans ; Nitroglycerin* ; Retrospective Studies

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to reveal detailed clinical features of benign childhood convulsions associated with acute gastroenteritis(BCAGE). METHODS: The medical records of 28 patients with BCAGE, who were admitted to the department of pediatrics, Chonnam National University Hospital between March 2000 and October 2004, were reviewed on the aspects of clinical symptoms, diagnostic tests and treatment. RESULTS: The ages of the subjects cases ranged from one to 96 months old and most of them had BCAGE in late autumn and winter seasons. Seizures were developed mostly 2 to 4 days after the symptoms of gastroenteritis appeared. Most of them showed generalized seizures which occurred repetitively during the episode of acute gastroenteritis (mean 2.7+/-0.9 times of the seizures attack), mostly 2-4 times. The duration of seizure was largely below 5 minutes, but in 2 cases it was prolonged over 15 minutes. The Rotazyme tests of stool were positive only in 3 cases(16.7%), and the cerebrospinal fluid and blood examinations revealed normal results. Either brain CT or MRI was performed in 17 patients and variable results were demonstrated. Most of them showed normal or mild brain swelling, but one showed cortical dysplasia of the frontal and parietal lobes, while another one showed cerebrospinal fluid collection in the posterior fossa. 17 patients were treated with diazepam, 12 of whom were prescribed additional phenbarbital or phenytoin. 2 patients who did not take diazepam were administered antiepileptics. Antiepileptic drugs were continuously given to 4 patients for up to one year after discharged from hospital. During follow-up periods, there occurred no further seizures in all the patients. CONCLUSION: BCAGE can be considered as a situation related seizure which does not need any long-term antiepileptic medications.
Anticonvulsants ; Brain ; Brain Edema ; Cerebrospinal Fluid ; Diagnostic Tests, Routine ; Diazepam ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gastroenteritis* ; Humans ; Jeollanam-do ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Malformations of Cortical Development ; Medical Records ; Parietal Lobe ; Pediatrics ; Phenytoin ; Seasons ; Seizures*

PURPOSE: An optimal timing for diagnosis and management of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) has become the subject for much controversy. The aim of the present study is to analyze people's preference in Korea for timing of diagnosis and management of PTMC using an online questionnaire. METHODS: The questionnaire consists of 3 questions about preference for the diagnosis and management of PTMC and 3 additional questions about respondents' personal information. An online survey was conducted from March 3 to June 3 in 2015 using Google Survey (http://goo.gl/forms/b81yEjqNUA). RESULTS: A total 2,308 persons (1,246 males, 1,053 females) answered the questionnaire. Respondents' ages varied widely from teenagers to 70-year-olds. If there was a suspicious thyroid nodule from PTMC measuring less than 1 cm in diameter, 95.7% of respondents want to know a cytological diagnosis for it. If a thyroid nodule turned out to be a PTMC, 59.5% of respondents wanted it removed immediately. For surgical management of PTMC, 53.0% of respondents were worried more about recurrences than complications. In subgroup analyses, respondents younger than 40 years old more often want immediate surgery than others: 66.7% vs. 32.7% (P < 0.05). Respondents who underwent thyroid cancer surgery (n = 91) were worried more about recurrences than others: 69.2% vs. 52.4% (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Almost all respondents in the present study wanted diagnosis of suspicious thyroid nodules immediately. However, there were opposing opinions about the preferred timing for surgical treatment and surgical extents. A patient's right to know their disease status and decision on treatments should be emphasized all the more.
Adolescent ; Aged ; Diagnosis* ; Humans ; Korea* ; Male ; Patient Rights ; Recurrence ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroid Neoplasms* ; Thyroid Nodule

PURPOSE: Despite the ready availability of pneumococcal vaccine, vaccination rates are quite low in South Korea. This study was designed to assess perceptions and awareness about pneumococcal vaccines among subjects at risk and find strategies to increases vaccine coverage rates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross sectional, community-based survey was conducted to assess perceptions about the pneumococcal vaccine at a local public health center. In a tertiary hospital, an outpatient-based pneumococcal vaccine campaign was carried out for the elderly and individuals with chronic co-morbidities from May to July of 2007. RESULTS: Based on the survey, only 7.6% were ever informed about pneumococcal vaccination. The coverage rates of the pneumococcal vaccine before and after the hospital campaign showed an increased annual rate from 3.39% to 5.91%. The most common reason for vaccination was "doctor's advice" (53.3%). As for the reasons for not receiving vaccination, about 75% of high risk patients were not aware of the pneumococcal vaccine, which was the most important barrier to vaccination. Negative clinician's attitude was the second most common cause of non-vaccination. CONCLUSION: Annual outpatient-based campaigns early in the influenza season may improve pneumococcal vaccine coverage rates. Doctor's advice was the most important encouraging factor for vaccination.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; *Ambulatory Care ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ; Humans ; Immunization Programs ; Male ; Patients/*psychology ; Physicians/*psychology ; *Pneumococcal Vaccines ; Republic of Korea ; Vaccination/*psychology

Tuberculosis generally affects the respiratory tract. In developing nations, the pericardium is the most common location of extrapulmonary tuberculosis; however, tuberculous pericarditis rarely appears as a localized mass or tuberculoma. We present here a case of a 62-year-old woman with pericardial tuberculoma. She had a history of effusive tuberculous pericarditis and drainage. Because she had taken regular medication over a period of six months, the pericardial mass with an adjacent lung nodule newly detected on the chest radiogram was initially suspected of being invasive lung cancer. Prior to pathologic confirmation, precise information from imaging tests, including computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography-computed tomography are helpful when making decisions regarding which methods should be used for surgical approach and treatment. Through imaging, our case showed typical features of pericardial tuberculoma and a favorable clinical course after two months with a change in antituberculous therapy.
Developing Countries ; Drainage ; Electrons ; Female ; Humans ; Lung ; Lung Neoplasms ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Middle Aged ; Pericarditis, Tuberculous ; Pericardium ; Respiratory System ; Thorax ; Tuberculoma ; Tuberculosis

PURPOSE: A better predictive model for occult invasive disease in ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) patients is essential to guide the tailored use of sentinel node biopsies. We hypothesized that recent improvement of contrast-enhanced breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could provide more accurate information on the presence of occult invasion in DCIS patients. METHODS: From a prospectively maintained database, we identified 143 DCIS patients diagnosed with needle biopsies in whom MRI images were available. RESULTS: Sixty-five patients (45.5%) were upstaged to invasive carcinoma after curative surgery. Ultrasonographic lesion size, mass-appearance on mammography, type of needle used, and the presence of suspicious microinvasive foci were associated with increased likelihood of upstaging. Among the features of MRI, only mass-appearance was significantly associated with the presence of invasive disease (p=0.002). However, up to 50% of masses in MRI cases had massappearance on mammography as well. Other morphologic and pharmacokinetic features of MRI, such as shape, margin, and patterns of enhancement and washout, did not have a significant association. CONCLUSION: Among various morphologic and pharmacokinetic parameters of contrast-enhanced MRI, only mass-appearance was associated with occult invasive disease. Our results show the limitations of current contrast-enhanced MRI in predicting invasive disease in patients with preoperative diagnoses of DCIS.
Biopsy ; Biopsy, Needle ; Breast ; Breast Neoplasms ; Carcinoma, Intraductal, Noninfiltrating ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Mammography ; Needles ; Nitriles ; Prospective Studies ; Pyrethrins ; Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy

Though the 2009 worldwide influenza A (H1N1) pandemic has been declared to have ended, the influenza virus is expected to continue to circulate from some years as a seasonal influenza. A rapid antigen test (RAT) can aid in rapid diagnosis and allow for early antiviral treatment. We evaluated the clinical usefulness of RAT using SD Bioline Influenza Antigen Test(R) kit to detect the influenza virus, considering various factors. From August 1, 2009 to October 10, 2009, a total of 938 patients who visited the outpatient clinic at Korea University Guro Hospital with influenza-like illnesses were enrolled in the study. Throat or nasopharyngeal swab specimens were obtained from each of the patients. Using these specimens, we evaluated the influenza detection rate by rapid antigen test based on the real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) method. In comparison with rRT-PCR, the sensitivity and specificity of the RAT were 44.0% and 99.9%, respectively. The cyclic threshold values of RAT negative specimens were higher than RAT positive specimens (30.1+/-3.1 vs. 28.3+/-3.9, p=0.031). The sensitivity of the RAT kit was higher in patients who visited clinics within two days of symptom onset (60.4% vs. 11.1%, p=0.026). The results of this study show that the RAT cannot be recommended for general use in all patients with influenza-like illness because of its low sensitivity. The RAT may be used, only in the settings with limited diagnostic resources, for patients who visit a clinic within two days of symptom onset.
Antigens, Viral/genetics ; Humans ; Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype/genetics/immunology/*isolation & purification ; Influenza, Human/*diagnosis/virology ; Reagent Kits, Diagnostic ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Time Factors